torpor

PRONUNCIATION:

(TOR-puhr)

MEANING:

noun: A state marked by apathy, lethargy, and inactivity.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin torpere (to be stiff or numb). Ultimately from the Indo-European
root ster- (stiff), which also gave us starch, stare, stork, starve,
cholesterol, torpedo, and torpid.
Earliest documented use: 1607.

USAGE:

“I’ve had this job [film critic] for just more than a year, and during
that time going to the cinema once a week has become a deeply dreary
and onerous task, so much so that I now associate cinema buildings
themselves with torpor, contempt, and monotony.”
Julie Burchill; Shooting for the Hip; The Times (London, UK); Oct 23, 1994.

The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country. -Hermann Göring, Nazi military leader (12 Jan 1893-1946)